1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to an apparatus for manually pressing a ball of dough into a flat disc configuration and then effecting the baking of the disc by the same plates that accomplished the pressing, and more particularly, to an apparatus for producing tortillas.
2. SUMMARY OF PRIOR ART
In prior patents issued to the Assignee of this invention, namely U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,724,755 and 4,769,252, there is disclosed a combination pressing and baking mechanism for converting balls of dough into thin flat baked discs, such as tortillas. The pressing unit comprises a pair of relatively pivotally movable heated pressing plates. The lowermost pressing plate is disposed at a substantial angle to the horizontal when in its remote position relative to the upper pressing plate. The angle of the lower pressing plate is selected to effect the gravitationally induced sliding of the pressed disc of dough off the lower pressing plate and onto a horizontally movable heating plate or disc of an oven. The apparatus disclosed in these two prior patents is designed to permit the continuous production of tortillas at a substantial rate and hence the pressing operation, which requires a minimum of time, is separated from the baking operation which requires a greater time and hence is designed to permit a plurality of discs of dough to be concurrently baked.
There are many restaurants producing tortillas wherein the volume required is substantially in excess of the capability of the pressing and baking machines disclosed in said prior patents. There is a need therefore, for a pressing and baking apparatus for forming baked discs of dough, such as tortillas, which may be manually operated to effect the pressing and the baking of the dough disc by the same apparatus. Such an arrangement will greatly reduce the cost of the tortilla making machine.